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The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday registered eight more preliminary inquiries, including one against Ravi Kant, former managing director and now vice-chairman of Tata Motors, into the taped conversations of former corporate lobbyist Niira Radia.
On Tuesday, the agency had initiated four preliminary inquiries into Radia's conversation with Pradip Baijal, ex-chief of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, regarding his appointment as chairman of a pipeline advisory committee to allegedly favour RIL. The agency is likely to register two more inquiries, based on the Supreme Court's directive to investigate 14 cases based on Radia's conversation with industrialists, bureaucrats and others.
The preliminary inquiry against Ravi Kant relates to the supply of low-floor buses by the company to the Tamil Nadu government, under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission. CBI also initiated an inquiry against Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and former director -general of hydrocarbons, V K Sibal, for alleged favours shown by him to RIL and a quid pro quo reportedly received by him.
A Tata Motors spokesperson said, "The matter is sub judice. Hence, we cannot comment on specifics. Suffice it to say we will offer full cooperation in any inquiry by any government agency."
An RIL spokesperson declined to comment.
CBI would also probe former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda and other officials of the state government for allotment of iron ore mines at Ankua, Singhbhum district, to Tata Steel. The agency has named Radia, along with former Air India official Ramesh Nambiar and Deepak Talwar of Delhi Duty Free in its preliminary inquiry into the working of touts and middlemen and kickbacks in the aviation sector.
Radia has also been named in another preliminary inquiry registered on Wednesday, on alleged market manipulation and hammering of the Unitech stock. "We are pleased to learn the Supreme Court has ordered a CBI inquiry into the hammering of the Unitech stock. In October 2008, widespread malicious rumours were being spread about the financial health of our company, possibly by the bear cartels or market operators who had vested interest in making short-term gains," said a Unitech spokesperson.
CBI would also look into alleged criminal misconduct by Rajiv Gupta, a chartered accountant, as well as a few public servants, with regard to a survey and raid by the Income Tax Department and illegal gratification to income tax officials, in two separate inquiries.
Another preliminary inquiry related to allegations of accommodation entries, creation of paper companies, bogus billing and cash payment to various people. CBI sources said the inquiry had been registered against chartered accountant Anil Bansal, as well as a few public servants and others, to see whether there was any criminality and professional misconduct on the part of Bansal, based on Radia's conversations.
